The overreaction to week one's embarrassment is full speed ahead as expected, but right now, the best thing for Alabama football is to get back to the basics. A team is only as good as its offensive and defensive lines allow it to be. Instead of worrying about Kalen DeBoer's buyout amount, this is where the focus needs to be.
Florida State manhandled the Crimson Tide on both sides of the ball, and that is where the game was lost from the get-go. The lack of a pass rush or being able to stop the running game in any key situation made Gus Malzahn look like a genius, and Thomas Castellanos was far too confident in every third and fourth down situation on Saturday.
There was no passion by the Alabama defense, and the effort was sad. It looked like everyone was just going through the motions, looking both lackadaisical and lost. This is extremely worrisome because the defense is full of veterans, who had an entire off-season to prepare for a Malzahn offense led by a scrappy mobile quarterback. This was a rerun of the Vanderbilt game, where they did what they wanted, and we couldn't get off the field to save our lives. The defense was on their heels all day and were bullied along the line of scrimmage all day. There doesn't seem to be a leader on the field who is needed to get the defense right in key situations.
Everybody from the media and the fanbase will focus on Ty Simpson not being the guy under center, but the focus should be on the offensive line. There are at least three NFL-caliber offensive linemen, but by yesterday's performance, you wouldn't know that. On paper, this line is supposed to be big and bad, but got their lunch money taken from them on the school playground. Kadyn Proctor did nothing to solidify himself as one of the best left tackles in the country and continues to be an overall disappointment based on the hype and expectations.
A quarterback is only as good as the five guys in front of him and we cannot fairly judge Ty if the line play we saw yesterday continues. If the quarterback has no time to set their feet and make their reads, it doesn't matter who is back there. It would be irresponsible to send a true freshman into a situation that isn't beneficial for his development based on yesterday. There is too much talent along the line, but it starts with the players and their desire to be great. There are a few weeks for both units to get it together before the trip to Athens; less talking and all action is a must to right the ship after an abysmal first week.